Page 128 - Lok Sabha Elections

LS elections: Congress announces three more candidates for West Bengal

Congress party has also approved the candidature of Anju Begum as Congress candidate for the bye-election to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal from the Bhagabangola constituency

On Khadse's plan of returning to BJP, Mahajan calls him 'extinguished lamp'

Maharashtra BJP leader Girish Mahajan on Sunday termed his former colleague Eknath Khadse an "extinguished lamp". The comment comes amid Khadse's announcement that he would be going back to the BJP, which he had quit in 2020 before joining the undivided Nationalist Congress Party. Khadse chose to side with Sharad Pawar when the NCP split in July last year after Ajit Pawar and eight MLAs joined the Eknath Shinde government. "He is like an extinguished lamp. Even a gram panchayat is not in his hand. He used to control a bank, but the board of directors has also changed, and new board members do not listen to him. Why make his decision so important?" Mahajan told reporters. His wife and daughter have lost elections in the past, said Mahajan, who has been Khadse's arch-rival in Jalgaon district. Incidentally, Khadse, who was leader of opposition in the Assembly between 2009 and 2014, was a contender for the post of chief minister when the BJP won 120-odd seats in the 2014 Assembly ...

BJP's poll outreach: World's leading parties RSVP for festival of democracy

In all, more than two dozen political parties have been sent invitations and more are expected to be added to the list

TMC attacks central agencies to shield corrupt, says PM Modi in West Bengal

While addressing a mega rally in Jalpaiguri in north Bengal, Modi also claimed that "TMC's syndicate Raj" prevails in West Bengal, and the party is only interested in protecting its corrupt leaders

Lone warriors: Here're independent members of Parliament in Lok Sabha

The 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 had only one Independent MP, Satyendra Nath Brohmo Chaudhary, who was from Kokrajhar

Story in Numbers: Voters' pie in population getting larger, shows data

Current estimates suggest that voters now make up almost 70 per cent of total population

Annamalai Kuppuswamy: Will 'Singham' deliver a blockbuster for BJP in TN?

Annamalai quit the police service in September 2019 and joined the BJP in 2020. Despite losing the 2021 Assembly polls from Aravakurichi, he was elevated to the post of state party chief the same year

Katchatheevu conundrum: Can disputed island set tone for campaigning in TN?

Katchatheevu, located northeast of Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and southwest of Sri Lanka's Delft island, has been a subject of dispute between the two countries since 1921

Highlights: Oppn missed chances; BJP may win 300 LS seats, says Prashant Kishor

LIVE updates: PM Modi's Madhya Pradesh campaign ahead of LS polls, AAP leaders to sit on a day-long fast at Jantar Mantar, and more. Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

Poll promises

Congress could have offered a more progressive agenda

PM Modi to address LS poll rally in Udhampur on Apr 12: BJP's J-K Prez

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be addressing an election rally in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency on April 12, BJP J-K president Ravinder Raina said on Sunday. Polling in Udhampur is scheduled in the first phase of the seven-phase general elections on April 19 and Union Minister Jitendra Singh is seeking a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha from the constituency. Raina, who chaired a meeting of senior BJP leaders at the party headquarters here to finalise the preparations for the prime minister's rally in support of Singh, said more than two lakh people are expected to participate in the event. He asked leaders to chalk out a well-planned strategy to manage the affairs of the rally like making provision for drinking water and vehicle parking. Meanwhile, a BJP spokesman said that Independent candidate Sachin Gupta withdrew his candidature for the Udhampur Lok Sabha seat in favour of the BJP candidate. He did so in the presence of Raina, the spokesman ...

PM Modi launches BJP's LS campaign in Madhya Pradesh with Jabalpur roadshow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday kickstarted the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign in Madhya Pradesh with a roadshow in Jabalpur. He was accompanied by MP Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, state PWD minister Rakesh Singh and the party's Jabalpur Lok Sabha candidate Ashish Dubey. The roadshow started in the evening from Shaheed Bhagat Singh crossing and will culminate at Adi Shankaracharya crossing in Gorakhpur locality here. PM Modi, who is on his first visit to the state after Lok Sabha polls were announced, Yadav and others held the BJP's poll symbol 'lotus' as their saffron coloured vehicle moved during the well-attended roadshow. A BJP leader said special arrangements have been put in place to shower Modi with flowers when the roadshow passes through Gorakhpur market. Jabalpur is part of the state's Mahakoshal region, which also comprises Chhindwara, the only Lok Sabha seat the BJP had failed to win in the 2019 polls. The ruling party had swept the remaining 28 seats in MP. ...

LS elections 2024: EC uses social media to nudge electors to vote

The Election Commission has launched a variety of campaigns across social media platforms to nudge young and urban voters to cast their ballot in the Lok Sabha elections. The poll watchdog has also initiated a campaign urging people to first verify then amplify what they get on social media related to elections. Polling for seven phase Lok Sabha elections will commence from April 19 with June 1 being the last phase. According to the EC, it is nudging young and first-time voters through 'Turning 18' campaign, urging them to come to the polling station to vote. 'You are the One' campaign seeks to recognise importance of different stakeholders in the election process, including polling machinery, in ensuring that no voter is left behind. From voters and political parties to booth level officers (BLOs), ground staff, polling parties, administrative personnel, media professionals, central forces, and security personnel, each stakeholder plays a vital role in ensuring the integrity and

LS polls: Over 24k displaced people in Manipur to vote from relief camps

Eleven months of conflict, over 50,000 displaced people and a prevailing anti-poll sentiment in a section - the Election Commission in violence-hit Manipur is gearing up for the challenging task of holding Lok Sabha elections in the state in less than two weeks even as the campaign scene is muted so far. Chief Electoral Officer Pradeep Kumar Jha said over 24,500 displaced people have been identified as eligible to vote and special polling arrangements have been made in relief camps to enable them to exercise their franchise. "A total of 2,955 polling stations will be set up in the state for the Lok Sabha elections, out of which around 50 per cent have been identified as sensitive, vulnerable or critical. We are also setting up 94 special polling stations to facilitate voting by internally displaced persons (IDPs), Jha told PTI. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI) norms, a 'vulnerability mapping' of hamlets, villages and electoral segments that may be expose to threat

LS polls: Rahul Gandhi asks people to share feedback on Congress manifesto

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi Sunday said his party's manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls has been hailed by many as revolutionary, and urged people to share their feedback on the document through social media. Gandhi posted a video on Instagram in which he made the appeal. "I made this video last night at 12:30am, but my team thought it was too late to post. So I'm posting it now because the message is still relevant," Gandhi said in the post accompanying the video which was released around 10 am. "The Congress manifesto is the voice of every Indian, share your thoughts on social media," he said. In the video, Gandhi says he made the video after coming back from the rally in Telangana and many people told him that it is a "revolutionary" manifesto. He thanked people for their suggestions which he said helped shape the manifesto. Gandhi asked them to share feedback with him on the manifesto and tell him what they liked about it and what they did not. The Congress on Friday

New India knows how to protect its borders, keep people safe: CM Adityanath

The new India knows how to protect its borders and safeguard its people, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said during an election rally in Rajasthan on Sunday and asked people if it was wrong to kill terrorists. Adityanath was referring to a report by British newspaper 'The Guardian' that claimed Indian intelligence agencies were involved in targeted killings in Pakistan as part of an emboldened approach to national security after 2019. Addressing a rally in Bharatpur, the senior BJP leader said, "Three days ago, a reputed newspaper of the UK said that 20 deadly terrorists have been killed inside Pakistan and it was possible that India might have killed them. Those who gave shelter to those terrorists till yesterday are now not daring to say anything against India due to the fear of air strike." "We do not know what is the basis and the source of the report but this is the new India, which knows how to provide security to its people and protect its borders," he ...

LS polls: INDIA alliance wants to save corrupt people, says BJP's Nadda

BJP national president J P Nadda on Sunday charged that the INDI Alliance leaders, who are either on bail or in jail, were keen on protecting the corrupt people whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi was striving hard to end corruption in the country. Those leaders such as Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, were in prison while Congress leaders including Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul were on bail, Nadda said and claimed the opposition leaders presented a contrasting picture compared to the Prime Minister who is an epitome of development and determined to end corruption. Prime Minister Narendra Modi says I will finish corruption, but the INDI alliance leaders say save the corrupt people. That is their working style. In Tamil Nadu, the DMK, which stands for Dynasty Money Swindling and Katta Panchayat and its ally the Congress are corrupt. All of them are trying to save their families and dynasties and themselves from their corruption, Nadda said addressing a rally here. The oppositi

TMC smells unholy alliance between NIA-BJP, BJP refutes allegations

Alleging an "unholy alliance" between National Investigation Agency (NIA) and BJP, Trinamool Congress on Sunday said the Election Commission remains "conspicuously silent" to the issue. TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said in a post on X handle, "Experience the unfolding alliance between the @NIA_India and @BJP4Bengal, orchestrating conspiracies against Trinamool leaders and the Model Code of Conduct. "While this collusion persists, the ECI stands by, conspicuously silent, neglecting its duty to ensure fair play," Banerjee said. His post was preceded by a press meet by TMC where senior party leader Kunal Ghosh alleged that a senior state BJP leader from Paschim Bardhaman district, who had earlier been with TMC, had met an NIA SP at his apartment in New Town area of the city on March 26 evening and handed over a list of TMC leaders to be arrested by NIA ahead of the Lok Sabha elections from different parts of the state. "I dare this leader to either refute my ...

BJP trying to ensure people don't question rising petrol prices: Kanhaiya

Terming the BJP's '400 paar' slogan "perception management", Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar says such claims are a "malicious attempt" to alter the reality and are reflective of the ruling party's fear of defeat. In an interaction with PTI editors at the news agency's headquarters here, he questioned the BJP's confidence about the NDA crossing the 400-figure mark in the Lok Sabha polls, asking if it is so then why is it inducting leaders who cannot win polls while in the Congress and are like "used cartridges". Kumar also acknowledged that there was a "failure" on the part of old parties that had been in power earlier due to which the people got attracted towards the "extremism of the BJP" but said the change in the situation was only a matter of time as India's society is based on love and equality, and stands for co-existence and tolerance. Asked about the BJP giving the slogan of '400 paar' and whether does it not seem that the opposition is lagging behind in the battle of ...

LS polls: Oppn missed chances, BJP may win 300 seats says Prashant Kishor

Validating the BJP's claims, eminent political strategist Prashant Kishor said the ruling party will add significantly to its seats and vote share in south and east India, the two regions where its hold is weak-to-non-existent, barring Karnataka. In an interaction with PTI editors, Kishor also said despite the BJP's apparent dominance, neither the party nor Prime Minister Narendra Modi is invincible, pointing out that the opposition had three distinct and realistic chances of stopping the BJP juggernaut but frittered away the opportunities because of laziness and misplaced strategies. "They (BJP) will either be first or second party in Telangana which is a big thing. They will be number one in Odisha for sure. You would be surprised as, in all likelihood, to my mind, the BJP is going to be the number one party in West Bengal," he said. In Tamil he said, BJP's vote share may hit double-digit percentage. Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Kerala ...